Friday - The drive to 'Nelson' from 'Kaikoura' took 4h and when we arrived we tried to find some accommodation, whcih proved very hard as not many hostels had parking spaces. We finally found "Club Nelson", which is right on the hill at the top of 'Nelson'. We then went for a walk around the city centre trying to get our bearings. The main street is "Trafalgar Street" and that leads to "Bridge Street", where all the bars are! We then got a lovely healthy Pizza H...

Wednesday - We left "Neptunes' at 10.30am and went to the bakery to get breakfast before heading out of our nightstop at 'Greymouth' to 'Hamner Springs'. After a 4h drive we reached 'hamner' which was where the thermal springs/pools were. But at $12 entry we decided to move on. I drove us along "Lewis Pass" whcih was very picturesque - lakes, rolling hills, mountains and very bendy roads. We got into 'Kaikora' on the east coast at 5pm and found "Dusty Lodge", our...

Sunday - Today we drove from 'Wanaka' to Glacier country. We left at 11am and took "Route 84" and then "Route 6" up to 'Haast'. The drive was spectacular! We followed "Lake Wanaka" and then "Lake Hawea" appeared along the side of the road, backed by the snowy mountains of the "Young range". After an hour we stopped at "Blue Pools" and they were pretty amazing. You walked through a beech forest, over a swing bridge to the destinctive icey blue river and pools. Aft...

Today we slept in and when we woke up snow was falling! Our hostel is nice; $20, en-suite, TV in room, log fire and a really top kitchen. It is also really close to the town centre. We then had some lunch before heading into 'Wanaka' to see what was about. 'Wanaka Lake' is right on the mainstreet so we decided to walk a route around it, but found it quite cold! We then went and got food supplies before doing a bit of window shopping. It is really geared up for sk...

Friday - I had to drive today as Neeley had a superb hangover! We checked out of the hostel in 'Twizel' and drove up to 'Mount Cook', and what a stunning drive it was! Past "Lake Pukaki", through rolling hills and snowy mountains. We got to 'Mount Cook' and walked to the top of the hill opposite to get a great view. After a break for lunch I then drove us to 'Wanaka'. It was not an easy drive as there was snow, ice and frost about on the roads, especially on the ...